Between the Lines
by Cliodhna
Summary: Ginny Weasley is a Gryffindor Princess. Extremely wealthy, she's never looked twice in the direction of poor Slytherin Draco Malfoy. He and his friend Hermione decide that they're going to change that - plus,Hermione is harbouring a HUGE crush on Ron. AU.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I am not usually a fan of Ginny with anyone but Harry…but I loved the idea of this challenge so much I just went with it. This is my first Harry Potter story, not counting my Fred and George mini story thing, so please bear with me!

I found the challenge at 'forums . draco and ginny . com / index . php ? board = 5 . 0 - 5 5 k'

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**Chapter One**

Draco Malfoy was running from a burning building. He pushed frantically through the crowds of evacuated people, searching for the one person he needed to see. Forcing his way between the tightly knit groups of people, he was forced to admit she wasn't there. Gulping a huge amount of air, he turned around and ran back into the inferno. His stomach flipped over. He could hear her screaming. He looked into every smoke filled room as he passed, searching for a glimpse. Suddenly, he saw it. One pale, limp arm; thin fingers clawing through the smoke. He ran inside and heaved the girl over his shoulder, and, dodging fallen beams, managed to get them both safely out. It had started raining, and the crowds melted away.

'Oh Draco,' she said, tears running down her sooty face, 'you saved me!'

'You're welcome, baby,' he replied, smiling down at her. He leaned down to kiss her, and just at the moment her perfect lips touched his, his alarm rang shrilly in his ear.

'Bugger…' he sighed, as he forced his eyes open and slammed his palm onto the off button of his alarm clock. He sat up and stretched. Saturday. Well, at least he didn't have any classes, he thought, as he pulled on his weekend clothes. His dormitory mates had already vacated the room, so he headed up to breakfast alone, and reflected on his dream.

Ginny Weasley. It had been the third one that week to feature her. Her beautiful red hair, and her glowing skin, and her brilliant smile…he sighed heavily. If there was one thing he'd learned in his six years at Hogwarts, it was that his type didn't mix with hers. She was beautiful, rich, popular…and most importantly, she was a Gryffindor. Draco was poor, very poor, with only his once proud family name keeping him in his family's house of Slytherin. It was a general rule in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry that Gryffindors and Slytherins didn't mix. Rivalries that went back hundreds of years, feuds and wars, some, Draco admitted bitterly, begun by his own family. His ancestors and their proud ways, Pureblood this and Slytherin that. His father was the same, bitter and twisted, but Draco knew differently.

'Hey, Drake,' called a voice from the entrance hall. 'I waited for you.'

Draco looked up to see his friend Blaise Zabini standing against the cold stone wall next to the dungeon entrance of their dormitory. Blaise was in Slytherin like Draco, and although he was considerably wealthier, he didn't fall for most of the Slytherin ideals. He and Draco had been the best of friends ever since their first train ride to Hogwarts, over six years previously.

They headed into the Great Hall, and over to their usual seats at the very end of the Slytherin table. 'So what are we doing today?' Blaise asked Draco.

'Well, _I'll _be doing the same as usual,' Draco answered.

'Let me guess. Over-analysing another Ginny Weasley dream?' Blaise asked, a hint of a smirk on his features.

'Yeah. This time it was a burning building I saved her from,' Draco said through a mouthful of cereal.

'Ahh. And are we looking it up in the library for possible meaning, or are we just in fantasy mode?'

'Fantasy, I think. I can't really be bothered with the library today,' Draco sighed.

'Oh we'll probably end up there. We always do,' Blaise sighed along with Draco.

They fell into silence, and Draco took the time to gaze at Ginny, all the way across the hall at the Gryffindor table, sitting with her brother, Ron, and their best friend Harry Potter. He felt a ripple of dislike when he saw Harry, although he kept telling himself he had no real reason to. Sixteen years ago, when Harry had just been a baby, a Dark Lord Voldemort had tried to kill him to fulfil a prophecy, but for some reason when he began to curse the one year old, the curse backfired, killing him. Harry became famous for being 'The Boy Who Lived,' and his fame and fortune, not to mention his family name, put him on a par with the Weasley's. The Potters were pureblood, expect for Harry's mother, Lily, who was muggle born. She was a healer at St Mungo's Hospital, and his father was an Auror. He had caught Draco's father, Lucius, who had been a supporter of Voldemort at the time of the war, and had sent him to Azkaban. Draco didn't particularly miss his father, even thought he deserved to be where he was, but there was still the smallest touch of Malfoy pride in him that told him to dislike Harry.

That and the fact that he was always with Ginny. That sucked, too.

He and Blaise both jumped as the post owls swooped into the hall, delivering the day's mail. Draco saw a flock of owls head toward the Gryffindor table, and land in front of Harry, Ron and Ginny.

Blaise was preoccupied with opening a parcel from home, so Draco turned back to the Gryffindor table and watched Ginny open her mail.

A letter from home, he noted, and…two of what looked like love letters. He narrowed his eyes. Ginny was the Gryffindor Princess, he thought. She'd never go out with anyone who'd send her a _love letter._

Ron had received a Daily Prophet, which, laughing, he proceeded to show the front page of to Harry, who had just opened a letter from home and one from Bathilda Bagshot, who often wrote to him. She was friends of his parents. Draco shook his head. It was a testament of his obsession with Ginny that he knew so much about Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. Something seriously needed to be done.

'C'mon,' Draco said to Blaise. 'I'm not hungry.'

The stood up and ambled back to the entrance hall.

'Get any interesting mail then?' Blaise asked Draco, who laughed bitterly.

'Nothing, Blaise,' he said, smiling wryly. 'You?'

'Letter from mum. She's met _another_ bloke.'

'Think she'll marry this one?'

'Oh probably. Old money, very pure blood.'

'Sounds her type – hey, what's going on?' Draco halted in the middle of the hall. There was a group of students huddled around something next to the stairs. 'Oi!' Draco shouted, elbowing his way in, followed by Blaise. When he got to the middle, his stomach sank.

Just as he'd expected.

'C'mon Hermione,' he said, taking the girl by the arm and leading her up the stairs. They walked in silence, the three of them, until they reached the library, the place Draco knew Hermione felt safest.

'What happened?' Blaise asked, concerned, as they sat down at Hermione's favourite table.

'Oh, the same as usual,' Hermione said, who was attempting to smooth down her bushy hair and straighten her jumper. 'I was, you know. There.'

'Aw, Hermione, don't listen to them, they're just a bunch of useless idiots,' Blaise comforted her.

'Who was it?' Draco asked. 'I didn't get a good look.'

'Crabbe and Goyle again,' she said, reaching into her backpack and pulling out a book. 'So,' she said, trying to change the subject as always. 'What are we doing today?'

Blaise and Draco shared a look. 'Well, Drake had another Ginny dream,' Blaise offered.

'Oh. Shall we look it up again?' Hermione smiled at her friend. He was the first real friend she'd had at Hogwarts. They'd met in their second year when he and Blaise had stopped a group of third years picking on her.

Draco smiled. 'Only if you don't have any other use to put that big Ravenclaw brain to,' he said.

'So what happened,' she said, standing up to go to the dream section.

'I rescued her from a burning building.'

She nodded and wandered off to find their favourite and much used dream book.

When she returned, she sat and opened it at a chapter titled 'Fire.'

'Did you kiss her yet?' Hermione asked, flipping though the pages.

'No. I don't think I'll do that until I actually…you know. Do that,' he said resting his chin in his palm. 'I'm completely pathetic aren't I?' he asked.

'No more than me, Drake. I'm the Ravenclaw Prefect, and the cleverest seventh year in the school. And I get bullied by prepubescent Hufflepuffs,' Hermione said idly, while Blaise chuckled.

'So did you dream about anyone last night?' Blaise asked Hermione.

'Hmm, yes,' she replied, her eyes glazing over. 'I mean, no, of course not!'

Draco and Blaise glanced at each other. 'That's not what I heard!' they said in unison.

'Was it by any chance…Ron Weasley?' Blaise teased her.

'What? How did you – I mean, no,' she stuttered.

Draco raised an eyebrow.

'Okay, fine,' she slammed the book shut. 'It's Ron. Are you happy? How did you even know?' she demanded of Blaise.

'Your History of Magic notes happen to have a little doodle on the page referring to goblin wars. Well,' he backtracked, 'one of the pages referring to goblin wars.'

Draco looked at his shy friend's dull blush creeping over her pale cheeks, and thought about his own crippling shyness when it came to the subject of the Gryffindor Princess. It was utterly shameful.

'That's it, Hermione,' he said, standing up.

'What's that?' she asked, looking up at him.

'We're gonna do something about this. Starting tomorrow, we are going to achieve what we want.'

'Seven outstanding NEWTs?' Hermione asked, eyes wide.

'No, Hermione,' Draco's lip twitched. 'We're going to get our respective Weasley's. You're gonna get Ron, and I'll get Ginny.'

'We will?' Hermione said, standing up to face him.

'We will,' he agreed, shaking her hand as if that confirmed it.

'We will…' Hermione said, almost in wonder.

'Ah, but the question is, my friends…' Blaise stood up to join them.

'How?' they all said in unison.

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A/N: Okay, let me know what you think. I know it was short, but it'll speed up. And reviews make my day, by the way.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: See chapter one.

A/N: I hope you enjoy, and please leave a review!

* * *

**Chapter Two**

'I could push her into the lake, dive in, and rescue her?' Draco suggested idly, flicking through his potions textbook.

'Girls rarely go for that,' Hermione said blandly, doodling a large owl on a scrap piece of parchment. Blaise nodded.

'I'd go for the more, 'Hey, your shoes are nice,' approach, rather than the 'Hey, the giant squid is trying to eat your face,' way,' Blaise chuckled.

'I can't tell her her shoes are nice, she knows they're nice!' Draco sighed.

'She's got lots of people to compliment her. You have to do something different,' Hermione said, screwing up her drawing and throwing it in the fire.

'Maybe we should find out what she likes to do,' Draco suggested. Blaise rolled his eyes.

'She likes to shop,' he said.

'She likes other things!' Draco insisted.

'Let's face it, pal, you have no evidence that she has any semblance of a personality,' Hermione nodded at Blaise. 'She seems fairly bland.'

'You don't know that! Plus, you don't know anything about Ron, either!'

'He's funny,' Hermione smiled.

'Guys, guys,' Blaise broke in, before Draco could retort. 'We will get you your respective prince or princess Charming. We just have to do a little ground work first!'

XXXXX

'What a ghastly day,' Ginny said, flopping down on the best couch in the Gryffindor common room. Ron and Harry were already there.

'What happened?' Harry asked her.

'Charms test. Plus my heel broke.'

'You're a witch,' Ron said. 'Fix it!'

'I have,' Ginny replied crossly. 'It's just the principle.'

'You lead such a hard life,' Harry said dryly, looking up from the letter he was writing to Bathilda Bagshot.

'It's just that nothing ever happens!' Ginny shrugged. 'There's never anything to talk about.'

'Frankly, I'm happy about having such a quiet life,' Ron said. 'My Transfiguration homework is exciting enough for me.' He was spending his third night in a row on a particularly hard transfiguration essay, and it was not going well.

'Seriously,' Ginny crossed her arms. 'I am so _bored_.'

Harry finished his letter. He tapped it with his wand, and it rolled itself up and sealed itself. 'Well, why don't you make some kind of excitement then, Ginny?' He suggested blandly.

'Like what?'

'Like hushing up and giving me a moment's peace?' Ron muttered under his breath.

'What was that, Ron?' Ginny said, her voice hard.

'Why don't you, um, go on a date or something. That usually chills you out,' he invented wildly, wanting to avoid a confrontation with his rather more magically skilled little sister.

'All the guys that ask me out are complete morons, you know that,' she said, watching Harry as he summoned Hedwig from the Owlery to their common room in order to deliver his letter to Godric's Hollow.

'I know,' Harry said, turning round from Hedwig; his task complete. 'Why don't you step out into the hallway, and the first boy to talk to you, ask_ him_ out.' Ginny raised an eyebrow.

'Why?' she asked.

'Well, it'll give you something to do…you thrive when you're challenged…it might be a good guy…and it'll be funny for me and Ron!' he finished, grinning at his friend.

'Fine!' she nodded, standing up. 'Grab your invisibility cloak, whoever it is can't know you're both watching.'

XXXXX

Draco, Hermione and Blaise were headed to a disused classroom on the seventh floor. They used this room to hang out in as Hermione was in a different house than Draco and Blaise, and there was only so much of the library that the boys could take. They were discussing the newest man Blaise's mother had met as they walked past a large portrait of a fat woman dressed in pink silk. They were laughing at something Hermione had said, when, not paying attention, Blaise crashed into a girl standing in the corridor.

'Blimey – I'm sorry!' He smiled his apology to the girl – to Ginny. Draco had frozen beside him. He could hear Hermione whispering 'Just do it!' to Draco, but he knew it would be no use. 'Sorry,' he said again, and began to walk away.

'Hey!' Ginny called after them. Draco span around.

'Yeah?' he said hopefully. Ginny cast him a strange look.

'No – Blaise?' she asked again.

Blaise slowly turned to face her. 'Yeah?'

'Um, I was just wondering…' she smiled coquettishly. 'If you were free next Saturday?' She shrugged and continued. 'There's a Hogsmeade trip, and we've never really had a chance to get to know each other.' She arched an eyebrow. 'If you're up for it.'

Silence fell as Blaise took in what had just happened. Hermione nudged him. He didn't speak. She sighed.

'Yes, Ginny, he'll go out with you,' she said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. 'He'll meet you in the entrance hall at 11 o' clock, Saturday morning.'

'Okay. Thanks – um, what's your name?' Ginny asked her courteously.

'Hermione,' she answered automatically, used to people not knowing her. 'Come on boys,' she said to her friends, who were still both frozen to the spot.

As they walked away, Harry pulled the cloak off himself and Ron.

'That was a bit weird,' Harry conceded.

'No kidding. Watching your sister put the moves on some guy is not my ideal entertainment,' Ron shuddered. 'Excalibur,' he said to the Fat Lady, and the portrait swung open.

They climbed in and sat back down on their recently vacated couch.

'No, I mean, that Blaise didn't answer himself. And that Malfoy turned round first when you called for him.'

'Who's that Hermione girl?' Ron asked, throwing his entire essay into the fire.

'She's in Ravenclaw. She's a prefect,' Harry explained. 'She's the smartest in the year, Ron. Where have you been?'

'Just never noticed her before,' Ron shrugged as he pulled some fresh parchment towards him and began afresh on his essay.

'Well, we'll find out the answers to all the weirdness when I go out with Blaise next week,' Ginny said, grinning. 'You were right, Harry. That _was_ fun.'

XXXXX

'What the hell were you thinking, Hermione!' Draco and Blaise exploded in unison, as they entered their classroom.

'Oh come on, it was a brilliant opportunity!' Hermione rolled her eyes as she took off her bulging book bag and placed it on a table.

'How, exactly?' Draco asked, seething.

'Sit, and I'll explain!' Hermione insisted, smiling.

The boys sat down and waited for her to speak.

'Blaise can go out with Ginny on Saturday, as planned. There he will act like a complete tosser -'

'I'll _what_?' Blaise asked, incredulous. 'To _Ginny Weasley_?'

'Yes!' Hermione said indignantly. 'And I have actually thought this through, you know, so stop looking at me like I'm crazy!' She paused, exhaled, and continued. 'You act like a tosser, so she doesn't like you, but you drop hints about your brilliant friend Draco the whole time. So you repulse her from you and make her gravitate towards Drake!' She beamed. 'Foolproof!'

'I see that it has possibilities…' Blaise said, frowning. 'But how are we going to make someone as charming as me into a tosser?'

Draco shoved his friend, who toppled off his chair onto the floor. 'Brilliant plan, Hermione,' he grinned. 'Thanks for finally getting me a way in, even if it is completely backwards and weird.'

'No problem,' Hermione said, as she pulled out a stack of books from her bag. 'Who still hasn't finished that Transfiguration essay? It's due in on Monday you know.'

XXXXX

Hermione sat in Professor McGonagall's office the following Monday night, helping her favourite teacher go through their essays. She could often be found doing this for 'extra credit' she said. The truth was really that she actually enjoyed the work, and the company.

'Any that I should be worried about, Hermione?' McGonagall asked her, looking up from her own pile of essays.

'There's this one,' Hermione said, scanning the paper. 'It's about a foot shorter than all the rest, and whoever wrote it has mistaken the incantation for switching spells with the one for vanishing spells, and has consequently written the entire essay about the wrong thing.' She looked up. 'And actually he hasn't even got anything right about vanishing spells either.'

'Who is it?' McGonagall said, reaching over to take the paper.

Hermione checked the beginning of the essay. 'Ron Weasley,' she said slowly, handing the essay over, her mind whirring away on a plan.

'Oh, not Weasley again,' the Professor sighed. 'I wish I had the time to give him the help he needs – or to stand over him with a mallet and make sure he's actually studying…'

'_Icouldtutorhim_,' Hermione blurted out without thinking.

'Sorry, Hermione? What did you say?' McGonagall asked distractedly.

'I said – I said I could tutor him, Professor.' Hermione blushed a deep red.

'Why, yes, I suppose you could, Hermione. That's an idea…'

Hermione waited while McGonagall wrote a short note for Ron, which she gave to Hermione, along with the password to the Gryffindor common room. McGonagall warned her that the password would be changed at midnight, and if she gave it to anyone else, she could face suspension. Hermione accepted all this with a glazed look on her still flushed face. She wandered absent-mindedly to the corridor where McGonagall had told her the Gryffindor common room was, and stood in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady. Hermione gripped the note tighter in her fist; her ticket to Ron Weasley, and spoke the password.

'Excalibur!' she breathed, and the portrait sung forward. She climbed though the hole and found herself in the cosy, unfamiliar room, which she scanned eagerly for signs of Ron.

There he was! she thought excitedly. He was lounging with Harry and Ginny in front of the fire; they were laughing at something Harry had just read aloud from a letter. She braced herself and walked forward. She knew Harry from the Prefects carriage. That would be her way in.

'Hermione!' Harry greeted her. 'What are you doing here in Gryffindor?' He shook his head. 'I'm sorry - I mean, what brings you here?'

'I have a note for someone called Ron Weasley – do you know where he is?' she asked him indifferently.

'That's me,' Ron stood up. 'What is it?' he asked warily.

'It's from Professor McGonagall,' Hermione explained as she handed him the note.

Ron scanned the note, his face falling with every line he read.

'What?!' He wailed. 'Is this a joke? Tell me it's a joke!' he whimpered to Hermione.

'I'm afraid it's not,' she shrugged. 'What on earth is it?' Ginny asked her brother, grabbing the note from his limp fingers. Reading it, she chuckled. 'It's not that bad, Ron.' She handed Harry the note.

'You're only getting tutored!' Harry said, shrugging, and passed it back to Ron.

'Who is it?' Ron asked Hermione desperately. 'Who is going to see the full extend of my stupidity-' he checked the note, '-three times a week 'until my grades are exceptional'?' He sank back into the couch. 'You do realise how long that will take?' He asked Hermione. 'Whoever it is must have the patience of a saint, and the brilliance of Ginny's Bat Bogey Hex. Who is it?'

Hermione flushed again. 'It's me,' she said, smiling lightly. 'When would you like the first session to be?'

Harry stood up and pulled Ron to his feet. 'Now,' he said, shoving Ron in Hermione's direction. 'He wants to go now.'

'Okay…'Hermione said, walking to the portrait hole. 'I know a disused classroom we can use…' she said as she left the room.

'Well, go on, Ron!' Harry nudged him again.

'Why? Why did you do that?' Ron spluttered. 'Now I have to go and_ learn_ with Madame Clever, on _my_ down time!'

'Just go,' Harry rolled his eyes. 'Hermione's nice!'

Ron climbed dejectedly out of the portrait hole to find Hermione waiting for him in the corridor.

'Let's go then,' Hermione said lightly. 'And it's Madame _Granger, _by the way.'

'You heard that then?' Ron said, grimacing.

'Oh yeah. And it'll earn you an extra night a week if you keep it up!' Hermione said, smiling, startled at her own courage, and elated at the fact he was smiling back at her.

'Come on then, Let's go make me smarter,' Ron chuckled as he followed her to the classroom.

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A/N: I know it's been _forever_, but I hope you enjoyed that, and I've got another couple of chapters on the way very shortly! Meanwhile, my Fred and George series grows longer and longer…check out the new chapter of Things I'm Not Allowed To Do At Hogwarts, which should be up soon, and please, please, review! It's important to the process!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: See chapter one.

A/N: It's been a really long time since I updated this one, so I hope any readers haven't lost interest! RL is altogether too time-consuming these days. Anyway, read and review like always, and enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter Three**

'So you can just use a classroom any time you like?' Ron asked warily.

'Yes, providing the teacher knows,' Hermione said, piling books from her bag onto the table.

'Weird,' Ron shook his head.

'Yes, bizarre,' Hermione said drily, sitting down opposite Ron, where she was completely obscured by the tower of books.

'How did you fit all of those in there?' Ron asked, only just noticing the sheer volume of volumes in front of him.

'Undetectable extension charm,' Hermione said, moving some of the books to the floor so she could see him.

'Isn't that N.E.W.T. level?' Ron asked.

'Ron…this is our N.E.W.T. year,' Hermione said carefully.

'Oh yeah,' Ron said, shrugging. 'Alright Harriet, I suppose we'd better start.'

Hermione blinked once. 'Hermione,' she said flatly.

XXXXX

'So where are you taking her?' Draco asked Blaise eagerly.

'I dunno, the Three Broomsticks, I suppose,' Blaise sighed, shifting in his seat. 'I hate these armchairs, they're so uncomfortable.'

'Mate, come on!' Draco pleaded. 'You have to take this seriously for me!'

'Whose idea was it to put our bloody common room in the dungeons?' Blaise said angrily. 'Everything's cold! And green!' Draco aimed a swift kick at his shin.

'Blaise, we know Salazar Slytherin was a twisted old loony, can we please get back onto the subject at hand?'

'I know you're excited about finally having an in with her, mate, but I really don't want to have to do this,' Blaise said awkwardly.

'What, go on a date with a beautiful, intelligent girl?' Draco said, his insides burning with jealousy.

'We have no proof she's intelligent, remember,' Blaise rolled his eyes. 'And I just don't feel good about hacking off one of the most important students at the school!'

'You're doing it for your best mate!' Draco mock-punched him on the arm. 'What are friends for?'

Blaise looked hard at Draco. 'If you don't stop hitting me, I'm going to hex you through that wall.'

Draco held his hands up, chuckling. 'Ah, Slytherin humour…' he said, shaking his head.

XXXXX

'Excited then?' Harry asked Ginny, who was stretched out on the sofa in front of the fireplace. She was taking up all four of the seats, and her feet dangled daintily over the armrest.

'Not particularly,' Ginny said, not looking up from her book. 'I've not got to the good part yet.' She tapped the cover, which read 'Olde and Forgotten Bewitchments and Charmes, by E. Limus.'

Harry chuckled, and snatched the book out of her hands. 'Hey!' she said indignantly.

'I'm talking about Blaise Zabini, as well you know,' said Harry, holding the book out of reach of her flailing arms. 'And there are some second years without seats over there, you know.' He gestured to the whole sofa she was occupying.

'What? It's late, they'll probably go to bed soon anyway,' Ginny snuggled deeper into the couch. Harry rolled his eyes. 'And to answer your question…I don't know. I've never really spoken to him before, have you?'

Harry wrinkled his nose. 'Isn't his mum that society witch who's been married seventeen thousand times? I think my parents have been to a party with her before.'

'Well, we'll see. Maybe he'll be a cure for my never-ending boredom!' Ginny said dramatically, grabbing her book back out of Harry's hands, and swinging her legs round so she only took up one seat on the couch. 'Happy?' she grinned at Harry.

'They certainly are,' Harry chuckled, gesturing at the giggling second years that had just surrounded a suddenly grimacing Ginny.

XXXXX

'Hello Blaise,' Ginny said pleasantly as she reached where Blaise was standing, alone in the Entrance Hall.

'Oh, hi Ginny,' Blaise said, sounding distracted. 'Have you seen my friends?'

'Why?' Ginny asked, a bite of impatience in her tone already. 'Will they be joining us?'

'No…' Blaise said, giving the Entrance Hall one last sweep. 'I was just wondering where they'd got to. Shall we go?'

Ginny opened her mouth to respond, but he'd already started walking. A small smile crept across her face, as she hurried to catch up with him.

'Good start!' Hermione whispered to Draco. They were concealed behind a statue in the Entrance Hall, just behind where Blaise and Ginny had been. 'He was horrible to her!'

Draco grinned. 'Brilliant,' he nodded. 'This is going to work!'

XXXXX

'This is not going to work,' Draco said, his voice muffled by the fact his face was resting on the hard wooden surface of a table in the Three Broomsticks.

'Shh!' Hermione said, adjusting her extendable ear. They were hidden from view of Blaise and Ginny by a large Christmas tree Hermione had hovered next to their table, and they were eavesdropping on their conversation with some Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes extendable ears. 'These ears keep picking up background noise,' she snorted. 'Some of these products are not all they're cracked up to be…'

'Hermione, what's the point? He's being a total wanker and she's lapping it up!'

It was true. Blaise was trying very hard to be moody and sarcastic at every turn, yet Ginny was laughing at his cynical comments and with a casual regularity, would briefly rest her hand on his arm. She liked him! This was a disaster!

'So, Blaise…want to get another drink?' Ginny said coquettishly.

Blaise was panicking. How much more of a tosser could he be without getting a beating from one of her brothers?

'Alright. Your round,' he grunted, folding his arms and leaning back in his chair.

Ginny grinned. 'Coming up!'

Blaise buried his face in his hands.

'Everything okay?' Ginny asked when she returned with the drinks.

'Yeah, just wish my mate Draco was here, he uh, loves this song,' Blaise said, nodding towards the radio on the bar, silently cursing himself for not coming up with something a bit more, well, manly. Ginny raised an eyebrow. 'You keep talking about your pal Draco. Should I be telling you about Harry and Ron?'

Blaise shrugged. 'Not bothered.' Ginny smirked.

'Well, Ron's got this tattoo…'

A few tables away, Draco ripped the extendable ear out of his own and threw it, disgusted, on the table. 'Draco loves this song?' he hissed. 'Is he trying to make me sound gay on purpose?'

'Calm down Draco, it's not over yet,' Hermione said, listening intently to Ginny's story about Ron.

'_It was a_ _Celestina Warbeck song!_' Draco seethed. Hermione stifled a giggle.

'Yeah, that was unfortunate timing,' she grinned. 'A Pygmy Puff? Do you reckon that's true?'

'Not unless he's a real 'Celestina Warbeck fan,'' Draco huffed, slouching in his chair. 'This is a lost cause. I can't wait for Christmas.'

'Are we still going to Blaise's?' Hermione asked, pulling her own extendable ear out and taking a sip of Butterbeer.

'Yeah,' Draco nodded. 'Beats Christmas in the Malfoy household. Even if Blaise is making me sound like a prat to the love of my life.'

'Don't be so melodramatic,' Hermione said, patting Draco on the arm. 'A holiday will make all things better.'

On the other side of the bar, past the surging crowds of rowdy Hogwarts students, Harry and Ron sat at a large table of their fellow Gryffindor seventh years. Parvati Patil and Dean Thomas were making galleons chase each other round the table, a game made even more pointless and annoying by the fact that the galleons kept falling off the table and rolling out of sight. Neville Longbottom and Seamus Finnigan were having a drinking contest with Butterbeer. It was impossible to get drunk off the stuff, they were just seeing who could drink the most without exploding. And Harry and Ron were discussing their own Christmas plans. 'Your turn this year, yeah?' Ron confirmed.

'Yeah, mum's all excited,' Harry grinned. 'She can't wait to have you both over.'

'Your mum loves Ginny,' Ron chuckled. 'She's definitely hoping the two of you get together!'

Harry laughed. 'She's like my little sister, mate!'

'Yeah I know,' Ron grinned. 'But I love it when the two of you get grilled by our parents!'

Harry took a swig of his Butterbeer. 'Notice how they never ask you about a girlfriend?'

'What about it?' Ron said, his grin sliding off his face.

'They know no girl in their right mind would fancy you now that rumour's got out about the tattoo!' Harry slapped his friend on the back. Ron grimaced.

'I just wish I knew who started that, I'd wring their neck!' he grunted, taking a deep drink from his own tankard.

'Neville's out!' Seamus cried from the other end of the table, as a faintly green Neville made a mad dash for the bathroom. 'I win!'

He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. 'You can go as well, you still won,' Lavender chuckled, patting him on the back.

'Wouldn't do that if I were you…' Seamus grunted, lumbering off to the bathroom.

'By the way, I forgot to ask,' Harry said, nudging Ron in the ribs, 'how'd it go with Hermione?'

'Who?' Ron said, frowning.

'Hermione, your new tutor.'

'Hermione?' Ron looked surprised. 'I was calling her Harriet the whole time, I wonder why she didn't say anything?'

Harry rolled his eyes. 'Have you learned anything yet?'

'Well, her name. At least, _now_ I've learned her name,' Ron said, shrugging. 'I only understand every other word she says, mate.'

'Yeah, she's clever, it's like a different species, eh?' Harry joked.

'Just about. I've got another session tomorrow,' Ron said gloomily. 'I can't stand spending three nights a week with this bird.'

'Give her a break,' Harry said. 'She's alright.'

'Maybe. Hey, it looks like people are heading back up to school,' Ron said, looking up. 'Look, there she is,' he pointed at Hermione, whom he'd just spotted leaving the bar with Draco Malfoy. 'Weird company she keeps.'

Harry stood up and fastened his cloak on. 'Isn't that Ginny's date going after them?' He said, his gaze following Blaise as he shuffled out of the pub alone. 'Where's Ginny then?'

'I'm here,' Ginny said from just behind them. They turned to face her; she had an enormous grin plastered on her face.

'What's with you?' Ron asked, wrapping his scarf round his neck.

'I've just been on the best date of my life!' Ginny beamed. 'He wasn't all drippy and desperate like all the others!'

'Really?' Harry said, putting on his gloves. 'What angle did he go for then?'

'He was monosyllabic and distant and I actually had to work to make him talk for once! It was great!' Ginny said, almost skipping as they headed towards the door.

'He didn't want to walk back up with you?' Ron asked, sounding unimpressed.

'No, he wanted to meet his friends. Isn't that nice?' Ginny sighed dreamily.

Harry and Ron rolled their eyes. It was going to be a long walk back up to the school.

XXXXX

'Well that went horribly,' Draco spat.

'You're telling me!' Blaise yelped. 'What is wrong with that girl?'

'I think I'm starting to see a flaw in my brilliant plan,' Hermione said slowly.

'Oh really, Hermione? I can't imagine what it could be, that everything seems to be going along _swimmingly_, as far as I can tell!' Draco fumed, kicking the snow as he ploughed through it on the path back to Hogwarts.

'Sarcasm achieves nothing,' Hermione said pointedly. 'And no, I think that Ginny's used to boys drooling over her, like, well, you, Draco. And Blaise was a change. I think that's why she liked him.'

'And you couldn't have foreseen that?' Blaise demanded of her.

'Well, no. I was never any good at Divination,' Hermione snickered. 'Look, it's not a problem, we just need to come up with another plan.'

'Such as?' Draco asked resignedly.

'Make her realise that the bad boy thing really is bad. And then…enter Draco,' Hermione said simply.

Draco stared at her. 'I used to trust you, you know.'

'What?' Hermione shrugged. 'It might work. Besides,' she cocked her head to the side, 'it's our only option.'

'Alright then genius, how are things with you and Ron?' Draco huffed, wanting to get off the subject of Blaise and Ginny going on more dates.

'He keeps calling me Harriet,' Hermione said sadly.

Blaise snorted. 'I don't know who the biggest loser is in this situation , I really don't,' he said slinging his arms round the shoulders of his friends. 'I think we've got a ways to go yet, gang.'

Hermione and Draco chuckled despite themselves.

'So…what's the story with Ron's tattoo?' Hermione asked timidly, as the three of them neared Hogwarts' majestic front gates.

'I hear it's on his chest…'

* * *

A/N: It's short I know, but I hope you enjoyed. Next chapter shouldn't be too far away, especially if you review!


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